Post Partum Depression and Child Health: Evidence from south Asia
The article “Effect of maternal mental health on infant growth in low income countries: new evidence from South Asia” by Vikram Patel, Atif Rahman, K S Jacob, Marcus Hughes was published on April 2004. This article reflects the causal effect of potentially treatable mental health problem of mothers on infants’ growth in poor countries of South Asian.
As the concept of male child preference is highly common in South Asia, the sex of the newborn infant is the main determinant of postnatal depression. Mostly, women are blamed for the birth of a daughter which creates massive mental stress on them and leads to depression. Eventually, depression results in less attention of mothers to their new born and thus the physical growth of the child is hampered. On the other hand, the depressed mood during pregnancy is associated with poor attendance at antenatal clinics, low birth weight, and preterm delivery. This lack of development of the new born due to mother’s depression, leads towards more depression.
Reference:
Vikram Patel, A. R. (2004). Effect of maternal mental health on infant growth in low.